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T'au Wargear
The race that came to be known as the Tau were first discovered by the Imperium of Man in the late 35th millennium. They were at a hunter-gatherer stage of development at this time, and were earmarked for cleansing. The combination of warp storms and the outbreak of the Age of Apostasy within the Imperium prevented this from occuring, and during the next six millennia of isolation the Tau were able to evolve, unite, and develop an extremely advanced level of technology. Also during this time, the Tau have incoporated numerous alien species into their fledgling Empire, the most significant of these being the Kroot and the Vespid. This list will describe the various weapon types, common equipment, and vehicles used by the Tau military, along with their allies. Weapons Pulse weapons The standard infantry weapon of Tau Fire Warriors, pulse weapons use electromagnetic induction fields to convert particles to a plasma state and propel them out the barrel of the weapon. There are several different types of pulse weapon: * The pulse rifle carried by Fire Warrior teams is comparable to the boltguns used by the Space Marines. * Pulse carbines are used by Pathfinder teams and are fitted to gun drones. Although as powerful as pulse rifles, carbines are smaller, trading decreased range for portability. Pulse carbines are almost always fielded with an underslung photon grenade launcher. * Pulse pistols are small hold-out weapons issued to battlesuit pilots and the controllers of sniper drones. They have an extremely short range, but are slightly more powerful than an Imperial bolt pistol. Burst cannons A multi-barrel weapon capable of sustaining high rates of fire, burst cannons are an offshoot of Tau pulse weapon technology. They are usually mounted on battlesuits and vehicles. Kroot weaponry Originally designed to use chemical propellant and solid ammunition, when the Kroot were absorbed into the Tau Empire, these weapons were upgraded to utilise the charged pulse rounds favoured by the Tau. Standard 'Kroot Rifles' are also fitted with blades near the barrel and stock, a throwback to fighting staves used by primitive Kroot. The Kroot have adapted Tau pulse technology to produce a large calibre weapon. This heavy weapon is equevilant in range and firepower to the autocannon used by the Imperial Guard, and is primarily used to engage light vehicles. The 'Kroot Gun' is significantly heavier than the rifle, and must be mounted on the back of the ape-like Krootox. Plasma rifles In addition to their skill with pulse weapons, the Tau have developed plasma rifles that do not suffer from the fatal overheating problems of plasma-based weaponry used by other races. However, a side effect of the increased operator safety, Tau plasma rifles are weaker than equevilant weapons from other races. Railguns Linear accelerator weapons, known more colloquially as railguns, are high-power weapons mounted on Tau battlesuits and tanks. These weapons fire a single, solid projectile at hypervelocity, although the vehicle-mounted version can also fire a sophisticated bundle of submunitions. Railguns have been used for some time by battlesuits and vehicles, and the technology has been scaled up to the point where massive railcannon batteries are mounted on Air Caste starships. However, it was only recently that the Tau began to experiment with man-portable weapons based on railgun technology. Although weaker than its larger relatives, the rail rifle is still powerful enough to be an effective anti-tank weapon. To use a rail rifle, the bearer must also be equipped with a hard-wired targeting device. During trials, one of the main flaws of the rail rifle was that the massive energy requirements needed to power the electromagnetic linear accelerator would overload the targeting device, causing feedback in the hard-wire interface, which in turn would kill the rifle's bearer. This flaw has been fixed through constant field-testing, and was authorised for use by frontline Pathfinder teams just prior to the declaration of the 'Third Sphere Expansion'. Ion Cannons An althernate turret-mounted weapon for the Hammerhead Gunship, and also appearing on Tau fightercraft and starships, the Ion Cannon generates a stream of high-energy particles, which are fired by the mainpulation of an electromagnetic field. The particles react explosively with the target, as a result of direct energy transmission at the atomic level. Missiles Tau missiles are self-guiding, as each missile is designed with a basic drone intelligence. These smart missiles can be fired at any target within range, regardless of line-of-sight. Once locked on to a target, the missiles will pass around any blocking terrain to reach that target. Smart missile systems are mounted on battlesuits and some vehicles. As Fire Caste doctrine discourages the use of heavy weapons within squads, a variant of the smart missile, the seeker missile, is present on some Tau vehicles. Used to provide fire support to Fire Warrior and Pathfinder teams, these missiles are guided to the target by a combination of the drone intelligence and communications from a Tau team. Fusion blaster An analog of the Imperium's meltagun, the fusion blaster is mounted on Crisis battlesuits as an anti-tank weapon. Neutron blaster A weapon unique to the Vespid Stingwings, the neutron blaster is a hybrid of Vespid and Tau technology. Mounted at the barrel of each weapon is a highly energetic and unstable crystal, which has been harvested from the deepest layers of the lighter-than-air stalactite islands the Stingwings call home. This is combined with an efficient neutron projection system to produce a weapon capable of bypassing all but the most effective armour. Neutron blasters can only be used by the Stingwings, as the constant ultrasonic tone emitted by the Stingwings are required to modulate the crystal used in the weapon. Equipment Markerlight A handheld device used to target enemy soldiers and vehicles, the markerlight is not a weapon, but a unit (similar to a laser pointer) capable of several functions, including rangefinding, targeting for accuracy, and designating targets for 'blind' weapons systems (such as seeker missiles to home in on. Drones Independant artificial intelligences, Tau drones are used for a variety of civil and military functions. They normally require reqular instructions from a Tau to function, although if four or more drones are networked to operate in unison, they become capable of operating independantly of their Tau controllers. Drones that are linked to a control device cease to function if the controlling Tau is killed, or if the drones move more than a set distance from the controller. Drones are designed to fulfill a set role. The most common drone designs are: * Gun drones are armed with a pair of pulse carbines and are the most common drone type used by the Tau Fire Caste. They can accompany any Tau posessing a control device, whether he be in a battlesuit or leading an infantry Team. In addition, gun drones are often used as weapons systems for the Devilfish APC and Piranha skimmer. * Shield drones are assigned to protect elite commanders, along with members of the Ethereal caste. They are equipped with powerful energy shields and are programmed to block weaponsfire intended for their controller with their shields. If necessary, the drone will physically intercept the incoming fire. * Marker drones are equipped with an advanced markerlight system, and through the use of the control device can improve the accuracy of the operator and anyone else in the operator's Team. * Sniper drones are a recent development for the Third Sphere Expansion. A single Tau equipped with an advanced control and targeting system can utilise up to three sniper drones to provide accurate anti-personnel fire. The drones themselves are armed with a rail rifle, and project a distortion field that makes the drones and their operator difficult to hit. Hard-wired devices Vehicles References * * }} Category:Warhammer 40,000 technology